New Reading secondary can't come soon enough as one in eight pupils miss out on preferred schools

The most recent data shows one in eight Year 6 pupils were turned away from any of their preferred schools in Reading

23 June 2018

Reading children were the most likely locally to miss out on any of their preferred secondary schools.

by Jennie Slevin and Claire Miller

Nearly 300 children in Reading missed out on a place at all their preferred schools this year.

Across the area, 220 children applying for secondary schools and 55 children applying for primary places either were given a place at a school other than one of their preferences, or received no offer at all on the national offers days this year.

This total of 275 was an increase compared to the 175 who missed out in 2017.

In Reading, one in eight Year 6 pupils (12.4 per cent) missed out on place at any of their preferred secondary schools, the highest proportion locally.

Secondary school places

Year 6 pupils in Wokingham and Reading, Berkshire were the most likely to receive no offer, 0.1 per cent of applications or a total of two children each.

For those applying for a primary place, those in Reading were the most likely to miss out on their choices, with 2.7 per cent of applications receiving no offers for a preferred school. Children in Reading were also the most likely to miss out completely, with 0.1 per cent of applications receiving no offer.

For those applying for primary school, those in Bracknell Forest Council's remit were the most likely to get their top pick, 93.5 per cent, while those in Reading were least likely, 85.5 per cent.

Primary school places

% 1st preference

% non-preferred school

% no offer

Number with no offer

Bracknell Forest

93.5

0.9

0

12

Reading

85.5

2.6

0.1

55

West Berkshire

93.2

1.6

0

29

Wokingham

91.2

0.8

0

16

Across England, 83.5 per cent of applicants for a secondary school place received an offer of their first preference school on National Offers Day, March 1.

As well as this, 94.6 per cent received an offer of one of their top three preferences, according to figures published by the Department of Education.

At primary level, 90.0 per cent of applicants received an offer of their first choice school on National Offers Day, April 16, and 97.2 per cent received an offer of one of their top three preferences.

In 2017 562,487 applications for a secondary school place were received, an increase of 2.6 per cent on 2016 and the highest number of applications received since 2008 (568,723). The proportion of first preference offers dropped slightly from 84.1 per cent in 2016.

The proportion receiving an offer for a school other than one of their preferences rose from 3.6 per cent in 2017 to 4.1 per cent in 2018, while the proportion receiving no offers at all rose from 0.3 per cent to 0.4 per cent.

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Applications for a primary school place have dropped by 3.3 per cent from 2016, with 620,330 applications. This total is the lowest seen in the four years that primary level figures have been collected. The proportion of primary applicants who received an offer of their first choice school increased from 88.4 per cent in 2016 to 90 per cent.

The proportion receiving an offer for a school other than one of their preferences fell from 2.1 per cent in 2017 to 1.8 per cent in 2018, while the proportion receiving no offers at all fell from 0.2 per cent to 0.1 per cent.